Planning commissioners continue Highway 111 mixed‑use project after concerns about car wash and place‑making

The Indio Planning Commission on an unanimous vote continued consideration of a proposed mixed‑use project in Highway 111 Subarea 8 after commissioners raised concerns about whether a proposed car wash fits the corridor's place‑making vision and about phasing, stormwater retention and EV infrastructure.

Paul DePalatas, senior planning adviser for MSA Consulting, described the proposal as Phase 1 of a broader master plan that would include a drive‑through coffee shop, an EV charging station and a drive‑through car wash. DePalatas said the pads are intended to function independently and to support future medium‑density housing by providing neighborhood amenities.

“Those uses can be viable standalone projects in the location they're at,” DePalatas said, urging the commission to approve the technical reviews while staff and the applicant resolve any use concerns.

Commissioners pressed staff and the applicant on several technical points, including the project's phased subdivision, stormwater retention and traffic. Mark Greenwood, the city's consultant transportation engineer filling in for the city engineer, said the temporary retention basin would remain in place if Phase 2 never happened and that the site is treated as a single overall site for development requirements so later building would not be allowed over required basins unless they were moved or replaced.

On traffic, Greenwood said the coffee shop's peak demand would be during commute hours while the car wash typically peaks at midday and on weekends, so the two businesses' peak periods are unlikely to coincide and on‑site management should prevent queue overflow onto public streets.

Several commissioners said they were troubled that approving a car wash would consume one of the subarea's limited land‑use slots and could limit what other amenities could be sited there in the future. “The Highway 111 Specific Plan was written to limit auto‑oriented uses and create a stronger pedestrian place‑making corridor,” a commissioner said, noting the specific plan sets a numeric cap on limited land uses in subareas.

Public commenters offered contrasting views. Jim Fitzpatrick, speaking by Teams, said a prior plan for a 400‑unit senior project was abandoned for economic reasons and the owners are now pursuing roughly 300 market‑rate units; he also said the project team intends Phase 1 EV chargers in part to address Title 24 requirements and that parts of the corridor lack fast public charging. Parker Bridal, representing Quick Quack, said car washes commonly operate in proximity under a membership model and argued the use would be convenient for nearby residents.

Faced with those concerns, the applicant offered to revise the site plan to remove the car wash and show a generic pad in its place or to reorient and redesign the car wash to appear less auto‑centric. The commission indicated a consensus that the applicant should remove the car wash and return with a revised packet.

Commissioner (speaker 10) moved to continue the application to the March 25 meeting so the applicant could work with staff on revisions; Commissioner (speaker 7) seconded. Roll call recorded unanimous yes votes from Commissioner Slater, Commissioner Scarborough, Commissioner Santos, Vice Chairperson Ortiz and Chairperson Fronds, and the motion carried.

The commission took no final action on the conditional use permit, design review or tentative tract map; it continued the consolidated package so the applicant can submit revised plans and staff can complete technical reviews before the item returns to the commission and then to city council.

Next steps: the applicant will work with staff to return to the Planning Commission at its March 25 meeting with a revised site plan that omits the car wash or shows alternative design/orientation options. The council remains the final review authority for the full package under the Highway 111 Specific Plan.